According to a recent study, executed by a team of researchers from the University of Leicester, UK, and published in the journal Environmental Microbiology, air pollution may affect human health by changing bacteria in respiratory tract.

The study shows that black carbon, a main component in the polluted air, significantly changes the way how bacteria grow and form biofilms and that can alter their survival in the lining of airways and their resistance to antibiotics.

First author Julie Morrisey, an associate professor of microbial genetics, says: “Our research could initiate an entirely new understanding of how air pollution affects human health. It will lead to enhancement of research to understand how air pollution leads to severe respiratory problems and perturbs the environmental cycles essential for life.”

A new study, conducted by the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), states that the consumption of Vitamin D supplement can help in protecting people against respiratory infectious diseases, such as flu and cold.

For the study, the team of researchers analyzed data from 11,000 people who took part in 25 clinical trials in 14 countries, including the UK, Japan, U.S., India, and Italy. The results show that 1 person of 33 people taking the supplement was free from infection.

Researchers note: “The bottom line is that the protective effects of vitamin D supplementation are strongest in those who have the lowest vitamin D levels, and when supplementation is given daily or weekly rather than in more widely spaced doses.”